Method and a wireless device for collecting sensor data from a remote device having a limited range wireless communication capability

ABSTRACT

A device and method for registering devices on advanced networks as well as providing operative communications between a legacy device and a advanced network. The legacy device may contain data, such as sensor data, which is being collected on a network outside the communication range/abilities of the legacy device. An intermediary device may receive the data via a first communication scheme and send the device to a server collecting the data via a second communication scheme.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims the benefit of U.S. patent application No.61/300,237 entitled “METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR DATA PARCEL COMMUNICATIONFOR CELLULAR MACHINE-TO-MACHINE APPLICATIONS” filed Feb. 1, 2010, andU.S. patent application No. 61/293,463 entitled “METHOD AND APPARATUSFOR ASSISTED DISCOVERY IN WIRELESS NETWORKS,” filed Jan. 8, 2010, thecontents of which are hereby incorporated by reference herein.

TECHNICAL FIELD

This application is related to wireless communication systems.

BACKGROUND

Wireless communication devices implement numerous schemes and proceduresin order to operatively communicate with other wireless devices. Legacydevices often communicate via legacy communications schemes which may ormay not be supported by devices on more advanced networks. Additionally,some remote devices may be power constrained, meaning they cannottransmit beyond a defined communication range based on their maximumtransmit power level. Lack of a common communication scheme ortransmission power issues may prevent a legacy device from being able toeffectively send data or other content to more advanced networks.Moreover, devices contained on the advanced network will often beunaware of the existence of the legacy device since they cannotcommunicate directly.

An exemplary legacy device can be a Bluetooth enabled device, such as awireless picture frame. The wireless picture frame can send and/orreceive content, such as digital photos, from devices that supportBluetooth communications. In the case of the picture frame, devices thatdo not support Bluetooth would not be able to publish digital photos tothe picture frame, nor would they be able to receive digital photos fromthe frame. The communication constraints of the legacy device prevent itfrom being accessible to devices that do not support the legacycommunications scheme. For example, a Wi-Fi enabled computer may havephotographic content available for the picture frame, but it may notsupport Bluetooth connectivity. In this case the computer and pictureframe would not be able to communicate or share content.

In another example, a legacy device may be a wireless transmittercoupled to a sensor monitoring external stimuli in its general vicinity.For example, a sensor may be monitoring the functionality of a streetlight to ensure it is in operation during the correct time of day.However, the wireless transmitter coupled to the sensor may be powerconstrained or may not support a wireless communication scheme thatwould allow it to send sensor data to a server that aggregates data fromthat sensor. For example, if the transmitter coupled to the sensor has amaximum transmission distance of only a few meters, a member of themaintenance staff may need to manually check the sensor for sensor dataperiodically. This requires that a user manually go to the sensor toreceive the sensor data transmission, and then send an update to theserver with the information manually received from the sensor. Thedevice aggregating the data may be a server located on a network farremoved from the location of the sensor and its transmitter, makingaggregation of the data time-intensive and requiring a great deal ofmanual intervention.

It is contemplated that many sensors will have limited transmissionpower in order to minimize energy usage and could use relativelylow-power transmission schema such as Bluetooth, Zigbee, or the like. Inthis case, a sensor transmitting via a legacy communication scheme maynot be able to successfully send the sensor data to its properdestination because the sensor cannot communicate with the destinationdirectly.

SUMMARY

In order to allow for operative communications between legacy devicesand devices contained on more advanced networks, systems and methods aredisclosed for an intermediary device to facilitate a communicationsession between the legacy device and the advanced network, typicallywith little or no manual intervention by a device user. In an exemplaryembodiment, a wireless device that supports both the legacycommunication scheme and the advanced communications scheme receivesregistration information from the legacy device and transmits theregistration information to a device on the advanced network. Theintermediary device may also send data or content from a device on theadvanced network to the legacy device.

In the example of the Bluetooth enabled picture frame, the Wi-Ficomputer would not be able to send content to the picture frame, forexample, because it does not support a Bluetooth connection. However, byintroducing an intermediary device that does support both Bluetooth andWi-Fi, operative communications between the picture frame and thecomputer can be established. For example, a digital camera may supportboth Bluetooth and Wi-Fi communication schemes. Upon discovering thelegacy picture frame, the camera may contact a Centralized Gateway (CGW)contained on the Wi-Fi network that maintains a listing of devicescontained on the Wi-Fi network and the content and/or capabilities ofthese devices. The camera may then send registration information to theCGW so that the listing can be updated to include the picture frame. Theregistration information may contain information such as theidentification of the picture frame, the content contained on thepicture frame, the capabilities of the picture frame, how to contact thepicture frame, or the like.

Embodiments contemplate a large number of sensors located in a givengeographical region. For instance, a series of sensors may monitor allstreet lamps in a region, for example the street lamps in a park. Thesensors may also be equipped with short-range wireless transmitters inorder to transmit data from the sensors to nearby wireless devices.However, the server that collects and maintains sensor data for thestreet lamps may not support the short-range wireless transmissionscheme or it may be outside of the sensors' transmission range.Embodiments contemplate an intermediary device, such as a WirelessTransmit/Receive Unit (WTRU) that supports both the legacy communicationscheme and the advanced communication scheme.

For example, the legacy device may support Bluetooth, and it may bediscovered by the WTRU while the operator of the WTRU walks through thepark. After discovering the legacy device, the WTRU may be programmed toidentify the server that collects data from the street lamp sensorsbased on the identification information of the sensor. The WTRU may thenreceive sensor data from the legacy device via Bluetooth. The WTRU maythen send the data to the server via the advanced communications schemesuch as, for example, via a cellular data network. It is alsocontemplated that the WTRU may store the data for a period of timebefore sending it to the server. The WTRU may store the data andtransmit it at a later time in order to minimize an absolute or relativecost or bandwidth of sending the data to the server. The WTRU may alsostore the data for a period of time based on a determination that thesecurity level of the wireless connection is not strong enough. The WTRUmay store the data based on an instruction received from the server.

Embodiments contemplate numerous WTRUs implementing the method, therebyallowing delivery of numerous data parcels containing sensor data. If asufficiently large number of WTRUs are operating according to thedisclosed system, then as the WTRUs are proliferated across a largegeographical area, the coverage range of the system will increase. Theprobability that a legacy device with data to be delivered will comeinto contact with an intermediary WTRU will also greatly increase.Embodiments contemplate that WTRUs that are within a geographicalvicinity of a device with data may automatically receive the data fromthe device via the legacy connection, and transmit the data to theserver via the advanced connection with insubstantial manual user input.Embodiments also contemplate that a device with data may communicatewith the WTRU via a low-power/low-cost connection that is not capable ofestablishing a link with the destination for the data. In someembodiments, the entire process may be done without any intervention bythe operator of the intermediary device.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

A more detailed understanding may be had from the following description,given by way of example in conjunction with the accompanying drawingswherein:

FIG. 1A is a system diagram of an example communications system in whichone or more disclosed embodiments may be implemented;

FIG. 1B is a system diagram of an example wireless transmit/receive unit(WTRU) that may be used within the communications system illustrated inFIG. 1A;

FIG. 1C is a system diagram of an example radio access network and anexample core network that may be used within the communications systemillustrated in FIG. 1A;

FIG. 2 is a system diagram of an example system in which one or moredisclosed embodiments may be implemented;

FIG. 3 is a flow chart of an example method of carrying one or moredisclosed embodiments;

FIG. 4 is a system diagram of an example system in which one or moredisclosed embodiments may be implemented; and

FIG. 5 is a flow chart of an example method of carrying one or moredisclosed embodiments.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF ILLUSTRATIVE EMBODIMENTS

FIG. 1A is a diagram of an example communications system 100 in whichone or more disclosed embodiments may be implemented. The communicationssystem 100 may be a multiple access system that provides content, suchas voice, data, video, messaging, broadcast, etc., to multiple wirelessusers. The communications system 100 may enable multiple wireless usersto access such content through the sharing of system resources,including wireless bandwidth. For example, the communications systems100 may employ one or more channel access methods, such as code divisionmultiple access (CDMA), time division multiple access (TDMA), frequencydivision multiple access (FDMA), orthogonal FDMA (OFDMA), single-carrierFDMA (SC-FDMA), and the like.

As shown in FIG. 1A, the communications system 100 may include wirelesstransmit/receive units (WTRUs) 102 a, 102 b, 102 c, 102 d, a radioaccess network (RAN) 104, a core network 106, a public switchedtelephone network (PSTN) 108, the Internet 110, and other networks 112,though it will be appreciated that the disclosed embodiments contemplateany number of WTRUs, base stations, networks, and/or network elements.Each of the WTRUs 102 a, 102 b, 102 c, 102 d may be any type of deviceconfigured to operate and/or communicate in a wireless environment. Byway of example, the WTRUs 102 a, 102 b, 102 c, 102 d may be configuredto transmit and/or receive wireless signals and may include userequipment (UE), a mobile station, a fixed or mobile subscriber unit, apager, a cellular telephone, a personal digital assistant (PDA), asmartphone, a laptop, a netbook, a personal computer, a wireless sensor,consumer electronics, and the like.

The communications systems 100 may also include a base station 114 a anda base station 114 b. Each of the base stations 114 a, 114 b may be anytype of device configured to wirelessly interface with at least one ofthe WTRUs 102 a, 102 b, 102 c, 102 d to facilitate access to one or morecommunication networks, such as the core network 106, the Internet 110,and/or the networks 112. By way of example, the base stations 114 a, 114b may be a base transceiver station (BTS), a Node-B, an eNode B, a HomeNode B, a Home eNode B, a site controller, an access point (AP), awireless router, and the like. While the base stations 114 a, 114 b areeach depicted as a single element, it will be appreciated that the basestations 114 a, 114 b may include any number of interconnected basestations and/or network elements.

The base station 114 a may be part of the RAN 104, which may alsoinclude other base stations and/or network elements (not shown), such asa base station controller (BSC), a radio network controller (RNC), relaynodes, etc. The base station 114 a and/or the base station 114 b may beconfigured to transmit and/or receive wireless signals within aparticular geographic region, which may be referred to as a cell (notshown). The cell may further be divided into cell sectors. For example,the cell associated with the base station 114 a may be divided intothree sectors. Thus, in an embodiment, the base station 114 a mayinclude three transceivers, i.e., one for each sector of the cell. Inanother embodiment, the base station 114 a may employ multiple-inputmultiple output (MIMO) technology and, therefore, may utilize multipletransceivers for each sector of the cell.

The base stations 114 a, 114 b may communicate with one or more of theWTRUs 102 a, 102 b, 102 c, 102 d over an air interface 116, which may beany suitable wireless communication link (e.g., radio frequency (RF),microwave, infrared (IR), ultraviolet (UV), visible light, etc.). Theair interface 116 may be established using any suitable radio accesstechnology (RAT).

More specifically, as noted above, the communications system 100 may bea multiple access system and may employ one or more channel accessprotocols, such as CDMA, TDMA, FDMA, OFDMA, SC-FDMA, and the like. Forexample, the base station 114 a in the RAN 104 and the WTRUs 102 a, 102b, 102 c may implement a radio technology such as Universal MobileTelecommunications System (UMTS) Terrestrial Radio Access (UTRA), whichmay establish the air interface 116 using wideband CDMA (WCDMA). WCDMAmay include communication protocols such as High-Speed Packet Access(HSPA) and/or Evolved HSPA (HSPA+). HSPA may include High-Speed DownlinkPacket Access (HSDPA) and/or High-Speed Uplink Packet Access (HSUPA).

In another embodiment, the base station 114 a and the WTRUs 102 a, 102b, 102 c may implement a radio technology such as Evolved UMTSTerrestrial Radio Access (E-UTRA), which may establish the air interface116 using Long Term Evolution (LTE) and/or LTE-Advanced (LTE-A).

In other embodiments, the base station 114 a and the WTRUs 102 a, 102 b,102 c may implement radio technologies such as IEEE 802.16 (i.e.,Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access (WiMAX)), CDMA2000,CDMA2000 1×, CDMA2000 EV-DO, Interim Standard 2000 (IS-2000), InterimStandard 95 (IS-95), Interim Standard 856 (IS-856), Global System forMobile communications (GSM), Enhanced Data rates for GSM Evolution(EDGE), GSM EDGE (GERAN), and the like.

The base station 114 b in FIG. 1A may be a wireless router, Home Node B,Home eNode B, or access point, for example, and may utilize any suitableRAT for facilitating wireless connectivity in a localized area, such asa place of business, a home, a vehicle, a campus, and the like. In anembodiment, the base station 114 b and the WTRUs 102 c, 102 d mayimplement a radio technology such as IEEE 802.11 to establish a wirelesslocal area network (WLAN). In another embodiment, the base station 114 band the WTRUs 102 c, 102 d may implement a radio technology such as IEEE802.15 to establish a wireless personal area network (WPAN). In yetanother embodiment, the base station 114 b and the WTRUs 102 c, 102 dmay utilize a cellular-based RAT (e.g., WCDMA, CDMA2000, GSM, LTE,LTE-A, etc.) to establish a picocell or femtocell. As shown in FIG. 1A,the base station 114 b may have a direct connection to the Internet 110.Thus, the base station 114 b may not be required to access the Internet110 via the core network 106.

The RAN 104 may be in communication with the core network 106, which maybe any type of network configured to provide voice, data, applications,and/or voice over internet protocol (VoIP) services to one or more ofthe WTRUs 102 a, 102 b, 102 c, 102 d. For example, the core network 106may provide call control, billing services, mobile location-basedservices, pre-paid calling, Internet connectivity, video distribution,etc., and/or perform high-level security functions, such as userauthentication. Although not shown in FIG. 1A, it will be appreciatedthat the RAN 104 and/or the core network 106 may be in direct orindirect communication with other RANs that employ the same RAT as theRAN 104 or a different RAT. For example, in addition to being connectedto the RAN 104, which may be utilizing an E-UTRA radio technology, thecore network 106 may also be in communication with another RAN (notshown) employing a GSM radio technology.

The core network 106 may also serve as a gateway for the WTRUs 102 a,102 b, 102 c, 102 d to access the PSTN 108, the Internet 110, and/orother networks 112. The PSTN 108 may include circuit-switched telephonenetworks that provide plain old telephone service (POTS). The Internet110 may include a global system of interconnected computer networks anddevices that use common communication schemes, such as the transmissioncontrol protocol (TCP), user datagram protocol (UDP) and the internetprotocol (IP) in the TCP/IP internet protocol suite. The networks 112may include wired or wireless communications networks owned and/oroperated by other service providers. For example, the networks 112 mayinclude another core network connected to one or more RANs, which mayemploy the same RAT as the RAN 104 or a different RAT.

Some or all of the WTRUs 102 a, 102 b, 102 c, 102 d in thecommunications system 100 may include multi-mode capabilities, i.e., theWTRUs 102 a, 102 b, 102 c, 102 d may include multiple transceivers forcommunicating with different wireless networks over different wirelesslinks. For example, the WTRU 102 c shown in FIG. 1A may be configured tocommunicate with the base station 114 a, which may employ acellular-based radio technology, and with the base station 114 b, whichmay employ an IEEE 802 radio technology.

FIG. 1B is a system diagram of an example WTRU 102. As shown in FIG. 1B,the WTRU 102 may include a processor 118, a transceiver 120, atransmit/receive element 122, a speaker/microphone 124, a keypad 126, adisplay/touchpad 128, non-removable memory 130, removable memory 132, apower source 134, a global positioning system (GPS) chipset 136, andother peripherals 138. It will be appreciated that the WTRU 102 mayinclude any sub-combination of the foregoing elements while remainingconsistent with an embodiment.

The processor 118 may be a general purpose processor, a special purposeprocessor, a conventional processor, a digital signal processor (DSP), aplurality of microprocessors, one or more microprocessors in associationwith a DSP core, a controller, a microcontroller, Application SpecificIntegrated Circuits (ASICs), Field Programmable Gate Array (FPGAs)circuits, any other type of integrated circuit (IC), a state machine,and the like. The processor 118 may perform signal coding, dataprocessing, power control, input/output processing, and/or any otherfunctionality that enables the WTRU 102 to operate in a wirelessenvironment. The processor 118 may be coupled to the transceiver 120,which may be coupled to the transmit/receive element 122. While FIG. 1Bdepicts the processor 118 and the transceiver 120 as separatecomponents, it will be appreciated that the processor 118 and thetransceiver 120 may be integrated together in an electronic package orchip.

The transmit/receive element 122 may be configured to transmit signalsto, or receive signals from, a base station (e.g., the base station 114a) over the air interface 116. For example, in an embodiment, thetransmit/receive element 122 may be an antenna configured to transmitand/or receive RF signals. In another embodiment, the transmit/receiveelement 122 may be an emitter/detector configured to transmit and/orreceive IR, UV, or visible light signals, for example. In yet anotherembodiment, the transmit/receive element 122 may be configured totransmit and receive both RF and light signals. It will be appreciatedthat the transmit/receive element 122 may be configured to transmitand/or receive any combination of wireless signals.

In addition, although the transmit/receive element 122 is depicted inFIG. 1B as a single element, the WTRU 102 may include any number oftransmit/receive elements 122. More specifically, the WTRU 102 mayemploy MIMO technology. Thus, in an embodiment, the WTRU 102 may includetwo or more transmit/receive elements 122 (e.g., multiple antennas) fortransmitting and receiving wireless signals over the air interface 116.

The transceiver 120 may be configured to modulate the signals that areto be transmitted by the transmit/receive element 122 and to demodulatethe signals that are received by the transmit/receive element 122. Asnoted above, the WTRU 102 may have multi-mode capabilities. Thus, thetransceiver 120 may include multiple transceivers for enabling the WTRU102 to communicate via multiple RATs, such as UTRA and IEEE 802.11, forexample.

The processor 118 of the WTRU 102 may be coupled to, and may receiveuser input data from, the speaker/microphone 124, the keypad 126, and/orthe display/touchpad 128 (e.g., a liquid crystal display (LCD) displayunit or organic light-emitting diode (OLED) display unit). The processor118 may also output user data to the speaker/microphone 124, the keypad126, and/or the display/touchpad 128. In addition, the processor 118 mayaccess information from, and store data in, any type of suitable memory,such as the non-removable memory 130 and/or the removable memory 132.The non-removable memory 130 may include random-access memory (RAM),read-only memory (ROM), a hard disk, or any other type of memory storagedevice. The removable memory 132 may include a subscriber identitymodule (SIM) card, a memory stick, a secure digital (SD) memory card,and the like. In other embodiments, the processor 118 may accessinformation from, and store data in, memory that is not physicallylocated on the WTRU 102, such as on a server or a home computer (notshown).

The processor 118 may receive power from the power source 134, and maybe configured to distribute and/or control the power to the othercomponents in the WTRU 102. The power source 134 may be any suitabledevice for powering the WTRU 102. For example, the power source 134 mayinclude one or more dry cell batteries (e.g., nickel-cadmium (NiCd),nickel-zinc (NiZn), nickel metal hydride (NiMH), lithium-ion (Li-ion),etc.), solar cells, fuel cells, and the like.

The processor 118 may also be coupled to the GPS chipset 136, which maybe configured to provide location information (e.g., longitude andlatitude) regarding the current location of the WTRU 102. In additionto, or in lieu of, the information from the GPS chipset 136, the WTRU102 may receive location information over the air interface 116 from abase station (e.g., base stations 114 a, 114 b) and/or determine itslocation based on the timing of the signals being received from two ormore nearby base stations. It will be appreciated that the WTRU 102 mayacquire location information by way of any suitablelocation-determination method while remaining consistent with anembodiment.

The processor 118 may further be coupled to other peripherals 138, whichmay include one or more software and/or hardware modules that provideadditional features, functionality and/or wired or wirelessconnectivity. For example, the peripherals 138 may include anaccelerometer, an e-compass, a satellite transceiver, a digital camera(for photographs or video), a universal serial bus (USB) port, avibration device, a television transceiver, a hands free headset, aBluetooth® module, a frequency modulated (FM) radio unit, a digitalmusic player, a media player, a video game player module, an Internetbrowser, and the like.

FIG. 1C is a system diagram of the RAN 104 and the core network 106according to an embodiment. As noted above, the RAN 104 may employ anE-UTRA radio technology to communicate with the WTRUs 102 a, 102 b, 102c over the air interface 116. The RAN 104 may also be in communicationwith the core network 106.

The RAN 104 may include eNode-Bs 140 a, 140 b, 140 c, though it will beappreciated that the RAN 104 may include any number of eNode-Bs whileremaining consistent with an embodiment. The eNode-Bs 140 a, 140 b, 140c may each include one or more transceivers for communicating with theWTRUs 102 a, 102 b, 102 c over the air interface 116. In one embodiment,the eNode-Bs 140 a, 140 b, 140 c may implement MIMO technology. Thus,the eNode-B 140 a, for example, may use multiple antennas to transmitwireless signals to, and receive wireless signals from, the WTRU 102 a.

Each of the eNode-Bs 140 a, 140 b, 140 c may be associated with aparticular cell (not shown) and may be configured to handle radioresource management decisions, handover decisions, scheduling of usersin the uplink and/or downlink, and the like. As shown in FIG. 1C, theeNode-Bs 140 a, 140 b, 140 c may communicate with one another over an X2interface.

The core network 106 shown in FIG. 1C may include a mobility managementgateway (MME) 142, a serving gateway 144, and a packet data network(PDN) gateway 146. While each of the foregoing elements are depicted aspart of the core network 106, it will be appreciated that any one ofthese elements may be owned and/or operated by an entity other than thecore network operator.

The MME 142 may be connected to each of the eNode-Bs 142 a, 142 b, 142 cin the RAN 104 via an Si interface and may serve as a control node. Forexample, the MME 142 may be responsible for authenticating users of theWTRUs 102 a, 102 b, 102 c, bearer activation/deactivation, selecting aparticular serving gateway during an initial attach of the WTRUs 102 a,102 b, 102 c, and the like. The MME 142 may also provide a control planefunction for switching between the RAN 104 and other RANs (not shown)that employ other radio technologies, such as GSM or WCDMA.

The serving gateway 144 may be connected to each of the eNode Bs 140 a,140 b, 140 c in the RAN 104 via the Si interface. The serving gateway144 may generally route and forward user data packets to/from the WTRUs102 a, 102 b, 102 c. The serving gateway 144 may also perform otherfunctions, such as anchoring user planes during inter-eNode B handovers,triggering paging when downlink data is available for the WTRUs 102 a,102 b, 102 c, managing and storing contexts of the WTRUs 102 a, 102 b,102 c, and the like.

The serving gateway 144 may also be connected to the PDN gateway 146,which may provide the WTRUs 102 a, 102 b, 102 c with access topacket-switched networks, such as the Internet 110, to facilitatecommunications between the WTRUs 102 a, 102 b, 102 c and IP-enableddevices.

The core network 106 may facilitate communications with other networks.For example, the core network 106 may provide the WTRUs 102 a, 102 b,102 c with access to circuit-switched networks, such as the PSTN 108, tofacilitate communications between the WTRUs 102 a, 102 b, 102 c andtraditional land-line communications devices. For example, the corenetwork 106 may include, or may communicate with, an IP gateway (e.g.,an IP multimedia subsystem (IMS) server) that serves as an interfacebetween the core network 106 and the PSTN 108. In addition, the corenetwork 106 may provide the WTRUs 102 a, 102 b, 102 c with access to thenetworks 112, which may include other wired or wireless networks thatare owned and/or operated by other service providers.

FIG. 2 depicts an exemplary system capable of implementing illustrativeembodiments. Remote device 210 may be any device capable ofcommunicating, generating and/or transmitting data. Remote device 210may be equipped with antenna 212, which is coupled to transmitter 211for sending wireless transmissions, for example to WTRU 102. Transmitter211 may be controlled by processor 214. Processor 214 may be a generalpurpose processor, a special purpose processor, a conventionalprocessor, a digital signal processor (DSP), a plurality ofmicroprocessors, one or more microprocessors in association with a DSPcore, a controller, a microcontroller, Application Specific IntegratedCircuits (ASICs), Field Programmable Gate Array (FPGAs) circuits, anyother type of integrated circuit (IC), a state machine, and the like.The processor 214 may perform signal coding, data processing, powercontrol, input/output processing, and/or any other functionality thatenables functioning of remote device 210. While FIG. 2 depicts theprocessor 214 and the transmitter 211 as separate components, it will beappreciated that the processor 214 and the transmitter 211 may beintegrated together in an electronic package or chip.

Processor 214 may execute instructions stored on a tangible computerreadable medium that describe the operation of remote device 210. Theinstructions may be stored on memory 215. Memory 215 may be any tangiblecomponent, system, or subsystem suitable for storing data orinstructions. Memory 215 may be volatile memory such as Random AccessMemory (RAM) or non-volatile memory such as Read-Only Memory (ROM),flash memory, magnetic storage, and the like. In an embodiment, remotedevice 210 is a transmit-only device. In another embodiment, remotedevice 210 may also include a receiver coupled to antenna 212 andprocessor 214 in order to receive wireless communications.

Remote device 210 may also include sensor 213. Sensor 213 may be anydevice capable of detecting stimuli such as movement, light, heat,temperature, voltage, power, pressure, the presence or absence of asubstance, change in conditions or the like. Sensor 213 may be an activedevice or passive device such as a passive radio frequencyidentification (RFID) device. In an exemplary embodiment, sensor 213 maydetect light in order to determine whether a bulb in a street lamp hasburnt out. One skilled in the art will recognize that sensor 213 canmonitor a great multitude of stimuli, and could operate under an numberof possible conditions. It could be physically separated from, but inoperable communication with, remote device 210. Alternatively, it couldbe housed within remote device 210.

Remote device 210 may be monitoring a number of devices to ensure properoperation. For example remote device 210 may monitoring vendingmachines, parking meters, utility meters, street light failuredetectors, etc. Remote device 210 may be in a fixed location or may betransitory such as on a bus, car, train, airplane, person, package,animal, etc.

Remote device 210 may also be able to transmit to WTRU 102 a, WTRU 102b, . . . , WTRU 102 n via communication link 216 a, 216 b, . . . , 216n. Embodiments contemplate numerous WTRUs capable of receiving dataparcels from remote device 210 represented by WTRU 102 a, WTRU 102 b, .. . , WTRU 102 n (WTRU 102) in FIG. 2. Communication link 216 may be anytype of communication scheme by which remote device 212 may send dataparcels to WTRU 102. For example communication link 216 may be Wi-Fithat implements an IEEE 802.11 scheme. In another embodiment,communication link 216 may be Bluetooth. Communication link 216 could bea one directional link, allowing remote device 210 to unilaterally senddata to WTRU 102 or a two directional link, allowing communication ineither direction between remote device 210 and WTRU 102.

WTRU 102 a, WTRU 102 b, . . . , WTRU 102 n are also in communicationwith server 230 via network 220 and communication links 217 a, 217 b, .. . , 217 n. For example, WTRU 102 may connect to network 220 via thecommunications system 100 depicted in FIG. 1A. Alternatively, WTRU 102may connect to network 220 via a Wi-Fi connection or other type ofwireless communication scheme. WTRU 102 may connect to network 220 viathe internet or via a private connection. Server 230 may be any devicethat collects or maintains data from remote device 210. Server 230 maycontain memory for storing data such as RAM, ROM, flash memory, magneticstorage, and the like. Server 230 may also contain a communicationsinterface for example via a web server.

FIG. 3 is a flowchart of an exemplary method for implementing anillustrative embodiment in the system described in FIG. 2. At 300,sensor 213 on the remote device 210 receives a stimuli that generatessensor data. Remote device 210 may generate sensor data continuously, atpredetermined intervals, in response to a stimulus and/or at randomintervals. Remote device 210 may store the sensor data in memory 215 ormay immediately transmit the data via transmitter 211 and antenna 212.Remote device 210 identifies server 230 as the destination for thesensor data, however, remote device 210 may not be able to communicatedirectly with the server 230. This may be because remote device 210 doesnot share an operative communication scheme with server 230. Remotedevice 210 may not be able to communicate with server 230 because it isa low power device and server 230 is out of range. Server 230 may onlybe accessible via network 220, and remote device 210 may not be able toaccess network 220.

At 305, remote device 210 broadcasts that data is available. Thebroadcast may be directed to specific devices, to groups of devices, tospecific types of devices, to devices with certain subscriptions, todevices running specific applications, to all devices, etc. In anembodiment, remote device 210 may be a transmit-only device, so it willtransmit data parcels containing the sensor data, not knowing if it wasreceived by WTRU 102. In this case WTRU 102 will discover remote device102 at 310 by receiving a data parcel via communication link 216.Alternatively, remote device may be equipped with a receiver so that itcan both send and receive over communication link 216.

In yet another embodiment, remote device 210 has the capability ofreceiving control signals over communication link 216 for establishingoperative communications with WTRU 102 such as through a handshakescheme. In this case remote device 210 may communicate dataunilaterally; e.g., remote device 210 sends data to WTRU 102 but WTRU102 may not send data to remote device 102, although WTRU 102 may stillsend control signals to remote device 102 for establishing acommunication session. Remote device 210 may also search for a WTRU inthe vicinity prior to broadcasting that data is available, for exampleby detecting radio transmissions by a WTRU. In another example, remotedevice 210 may be equipped with a motion detector to determine when apasserby with WTRU 102 comes within its general vicinity. WTRU 102 mayalso actively or passively search for remote device 210.

Remote device 210 may also adapt the rate at which it broadcasts dataparcels or indications that data is available in order to conservepower, memory or other resources. Typically, low amounts of residualpower and/or memory would reduce the frequency of data parceltransmission. Additionally, remote device may include indications of itscurrent resource, e.g., power/memory remaining in data to be sent toserver 230. In another embodiment, remote device WTRU 102 can conservepower and other resources by looking for a broadcast from remote device210 in areas where a remote device is known to operate.

At 310, WTRU 102 discovers remote device 210 by receiving the broadcastsignal indicating that it has data ready to be sent to server 230 fromremote device 102. In an exemplary embodiment, WTRU 102 will receive thebroadcast at 310, and establish communication link 216, for instance viaa handshake. For example, Bluetooth devices may pair with each otherprior to exchanging data. After discovering remote device 210, at 315WTRU 102 may identify server 230 that collects data from remote device210. For example, WTRU 102 may be running an application that uses theidentification information of remote device 210 to determine the server230 that collects the data. In another example, WTRU 102 may identifythe server based on an identification information of sensor 213.Alternatively, WTRU 102 may identify server 230 based on the dataincluded in the transmission from remote device 210.

At 320, WTRU 102 receives sensor data from remote device 210. It can beappreciated that the order of 315 and 320 may be interchangeable, asWRTU 102 may identify server 230 prior to, in the course of, or afterreceiving data. In an embodiment, remote device 210 may be atransmit-only device, and WTRU 102 may identify remote device 210 basedon a received data parcel. The data sent from remote device 210 to WTRU102 is sent via communications link 216. In an embodiment, the data issent via Bluetooth or other lower power wireless communications schemes.

At 325, WTRU 102 determines if a network connection is available to sendthe data received from remote device 210 to server 230. If no connectionis available, for instance the WTRU is outside if its service range,then at 330 WTRU 102 stores the sensor data so that it can be sent toserver 230 at a later time. Alternatively, even if a network connectionis available when WTRU 102 receives the data parcel from remote device210, it may still store the sensor data for later transmission. Forexample, WTRU 102 may store the data for a length of time based on anabsolute or relative cost, security, or bandwidth of sending the seconddata parcel to server 230. The decision whether or not to store thedata, or for how long to store the data may be made in order to minimizea particular metric. For example cost (i.e., price) of transmitting thepacket, required bandwidth, transmit power, etc. In an embodiment, WTRU102 may limit transmission to occur at or near a certain locations, orin a lightly loaded cell or sector. The metrics or other transmissionrules may be chosen to achieve particular WTRU or network objectives;for example, to avoid quickly draining the battery of the WTRU, or tominimize network congestion or access the network during off peak hours.The WTRU may also save the data in order to transmit at typicallyunderutilized locations or near a collection point designed or optimizedfor collection of the packets.

At 325, if a connection is available, then at 335 WTRU 102 transmits thedata to server 230. WTRU 102 may send the data automatically, or it mayrequire approval from its owner in order to transmit the data parcel.For example, WTRU 102 may connect to the internet via a cellular datanetwork in order to send the data. In another embodiment, it may sendthe data to server 230 via Short Message Service (SMS). In yet anotherembodiment, WTRU 102 may send the data parcel to server 230 via a WiFiconnection over the Internet via an IP or UDP scheme or the like. It canbe appreciated that there are numerous other similar schemes for sendingthe data from WTRU 102 to server 230.

It can also be appreciated that although the embodiments depicted inFIGS. 2 and 3 make use of WTRU 102 for receiving the data parcel fromremote device 102 and sending a data parcel to server 230, any devicecapable of operable communications between both remote device 210 andserver 230 could be used. Embodiments contemplate numerous WTRUs,represented by WTRU 102 a, WTRU 102 b, . . . , WTRU 102 n in FIG. 2,implementing the method described above. Remote device 210 may broadcastdata to more than one WTRU 102, and redundant transmissions may benecessary to ensure delivery to server 230. After receiving the dataparcel containing the sensor data, server 230 may then update a databasecontaining sensor information. Subscribers or sensor owners may thenaccess the database in order to view or download the sensor data. Server230 may also send the data directly to sensor owners upon delivery ofthe data from WTRU 102. Additionally, server 230 may act as a web serverand make the sensor data available over the internet. In addition to thesensor data, server 230 may also store identification information forWTRU 102 and/or remote device 210 in order to develop billinginformation for the system. Server 230 may also control access topreviously reported sensor data.

Embodiments contemplate numerous types of implementations on WTRU 102.In an embodiment the owner of WTRU 102 may be unaware that WTRU 102 hasreceived data from remote device 210 and/or sent a data to server 230.The system may also be designed to automatically delete older dataparcels that may be stored on WTRU 102. In another embodiment, WTRU 102may provide notifications indicating that it has received or sent data,for example to the WTRU owner via a display or sound, or to remotedevice 210 via a reply transmission. WTRU 102 may also receive anacknowledgement from server 230 indicating that a data parcel has beensuccessfully delivered to server 230. Server 230 may also send WTRU 102a listing of other remote devices in its geographical vicinity. Server230 may also send WTRU 102 a message or instructions to be deliveredfrom WTRU 102 to remote device 210. The instructions may be in responseto the reception of sensor data from remote device 210 or based on arecognition that WTRU 102 is in the same geographical vicinity as remotedevice 210. Server 230 may also maintain a history of the identificationinformation of WTRU 102 that has received data from remote device 210.Server 230 may use the history to recognize which WTRU 102 most oftenmakes contact with remote device 102

FIG. 4 depicts an exemplary system capable of implementing illustrativeembodiments. Remote device 400 may be a device with data, content,processing capabilities or other information that could be utilized bynetwork device 450 a, network device 450 b, . . . , network device 450 n(network device 450) contained on network 430. However, remote device400 may not be capable of communicating directly with network device450. FIG. 4 is an operative communication system for registering remotedevice 400 with Central Gateway (CGW) 440, which maintains a listing ofdevices and content available on network 430, thereby making remotedevice available to network device 450.

Remote device 400 may include transceiver 403 coupled to antenna 404 foroperative wireless communications via communications link 420. Remotedevice 400 may also include processor 401 for controlling transceiver403. Processor 401 may also access memory 402 which may contain dataand/or instructions to be executed by processor 401. Embodimentscontemplate remote device 400 being unable to communicate directly withnetwork 430. For example, remote device 400 may be a legacy device witha legacy communication interface not supported by network 430. Anexemplary legacy communication interface may be Bluetooth. In otherembodiments, remote device 400 may be unable to communicate with network400 because remote device 400 is outside of the range of network 430 oris located in a region with poor network coverage despite sharing acommon communication scheme. In an embodiment, remote device 400 may bepower constrained and does not have enough transmission power to closethe reverse link with network 430.

Wireless device 410 may be capable of communicating with both remotedevice 400 and network 430. Wireless device 410 may include transceiver413 coupled to antenna 414 for operative wireless communications viacommunications link 420 and/or communications link 422. Wireless device410 may also include processor 411 for controlling transceiver 413.Processor 411 may also access memory 412 which may contain data and/orinstructions to be executed by processor 411. For example, wirelessdevice 410 may be WTRU 102. In another example wireless device 102 maybe any device capable of operative communications with both remotedevice 400 and network 430.

Network 430 contains numerous other devices with a variety of contentand processing capabilities. For example, network device 450 may be apersonal computer, a WTRU, a printer, a router, a server, a camera, orany other device capable of communications with network 430. Network 430also contains CGW 440 which maintains a listing of the identification,content, and/or capabilities of all devices contained on network 430.CGW 440 may include a logical entity such as Content and ServicesDatabase (CSD) for maintaining a listing of registration information fordevices accessible by elements of network 430. The listing contained onthe CSD may contain a device's capabilities, network address, location,content stored on the device, content requests by the device, addressinginformation for wireless device 410 which is necessary to contact remotedevice 400, or the like. CGW 440 may be accessible to all or a portionof the network devices 450.

FIG. 5 is a flowchart of an exemplary method implementing an embodimenton the system disclosed by FIG. 4. At 500, wireless device 410 searchesfor legacy devices such as remote device 400. A legacy device is anydevice incapable of communicating directly with network 430. For exampleremote device 400 may only support a Bluetooth scheme, while network 430may be a Wi-Fi network which may only support communication via the IEEE802.11 standard. At 505, wireless device 410 identifies remote device400 and then establishes communication via communications link 420. Forexample, wireless device 410 may require approval by its user or ownerin order to establish a connection with remote device 400.Alternatively, wireless device may be configured to automaticallyconnect to remote device 400 based on a predetermined setting orprevious communication sessions with remote device 400 or the like.

At 510, remote device 400 sends, and wireless device 410 receives,registration information of remote device 400. For example, theregistration information can be identification information for remotedevice 400. The registration information can also include thecapabilities of remote device 400 such as displaying pictures or video,printing materials, processing data, detecting stimuli, storing content,available resources or the like. The registration information may alsoinclude content or other data stored on remote device 400.

At 515, wireless device 410 determines if remote device 400 isregistered with CGW 440. Wireless device 410 may contact CGW viacommunications link 422 and/or network 430. Wireless device may queryCGW 440 for a listing of all devices contained on the network. Inanother embodiment, wireless device 410 may send identificationinformation for remote device 400 to CGW 440 which may then determine ifremote device 400 is already registered. If it is determined that remotedevice 400 is already registered with CGW 440, then at 530 the wirelessdevice can query CGW 440 to determine if there is content available forremote device 400 or if there is a request for content located on remotedevice 400. If it is determined that remote device 400 is not registeredwith CGW 440, then at 520 wireless device 410 sends CGW 440 theregistration information it received from remote device 400 at 510.

At 525, CGW 440 receives the registration information from wirelessdevice 410, and proceeds to add remote device 400 to a listing ofavailable devices. CGW 440 may also alert network devices 450 thatremote device 400 has been added to the listing, and/or that remotedevice 400 may be contacted via wireless device 410. At 530, wirelessdevice 410 may query CGW 440 to determine if there is content availablefor remote device 400 or if there is a request for content from remotedevice 400. Embodiments contemplate a network device 450, upon receivinga notification that remote device 400 has content available from CGW440, may contact wireless device 410 to request the content from remotedevice 400. Additionally, network device 450 may contact wireless device410 in order to send content to remote device 400. In still anotherembodiment, remote device 400, may receive a listing of contentavailable from CGW 440 via wireless device 410, and then request contentfrom a network device 450 via wireless device 410.

Although features and elements are described above in particularcombinations, one of ordinary skill in the art will appreciate that eachfeature or element can be used alone or in any combination with theother features and elements. In addition, the methods described hereinmay be implemented in a computer program, software, or firmwareincorporated in a computer-readable medium for execution by a computeror processor. Examples of computer-readable media include electronicsignals (transmitted over wired or wireless connections) andcomputer-readable storage media. Examples of computer-readable storagemedia include, but are not limited to, a read only memory (ROM), arandom access memory (RAM), a register, cache memory, semiconductormemory devices, magnetic media such as internal hard disks and removabledisks, magneto-optical media, and optical media such as CD-ROM disks,and digital versatile disks (DVDs). A processor in association withsoftware may be used to implement a radio frequency transceiver for usein a WTRU, UE, terminal, base station, RNC, or any host computer.

1-41. (canceled)
 42. A wireless transmit/receive unit (WTRU) forrelaying data from a device to a network, the WTRU comprising: a memory;and a processor, the processor configured to: determine that the WTRU iswithin an area where a remote device that does not have a networkconnection is known to operate; determine a network node to receive datafrom the remote device using identification information for the remotedevice; receive an indication from the remote device indicating that theremote device has the data to send to the network node; receiving thedata from the remote device; and sending the data to the network node.43. The WTRU of claim 42, wherein the processor is further configured tosend the identification information to the network node.
 44. The WTRU ofclaim 42, wherein the processor is further configured to send a signalto the remote device.
 45. The WTRU of claim 44, wherein the processor isfurther configured to receive a broadcast message from the remotedevice.
 46. The WTRU of claim 45, wherein the processor is configured toreceive the broadcast message from the remote device by receiving thebroadcast message from the remote device in response to the signal. 47.The WTRU of claim 45, wherein the processor is configured to receive thebroadcast message from the remote device by receiving the broadcastmessage from the remote device via an application that is running on theWTRU.
 48. The WTRU of claim 42, wherein the remote device has a limitedrange wireless communication capability.
 49. The WTRU of claim 42,wherein the processor further configured to conserve less power when itis determined that the WTRU is within the area where the remote deviceis known to operate.
 50. The WTRU of claim 42, wherein the processor isfurther configured to search for a broadcast message from the remotedevice.
 51. The WTRU of claim 42, wherein the data from the remotedevice further comprises one or more of the identification informationfor the remote device, sensor data from the remote device, and acapability of the remote device.
 52. A method for a wirelesstransmit/receive unit (WTRU) to relay data from a device to a network,the method comprising: determining that the WTRU is within an area wherea remote device that does not have a network connection is known tooperate; determining a network node to receive data from the remotedevice using identification information for the remote device; receivingan indication from the remote device indicating that the remote devicehas the data to send to the network node; receiving the data from theremote device; and sending the data to the network node.
 53. The methodof claim 52, further comprising sending the identification informationto the network node.
 54. The method of claim 52, further comprisingsending a signal to the remote device.
 55. The method of claim 54,further comprising receiving a broadcast message from the remote device.56. The method of claim 55, wherein receiving the broadcast message fromthe remote device by receiving the broadcast message from the remotedevice in response to the signal.
 57. The method of claim 55, whereinreceiving the broadcast message from the remote device by receiving thebroadcast message from the remote device via an application that isrunning on the WTRU.
 58. The method of claim 52, wherein the remotedevice has a limited range wireless communication capability.
 49. Themethod of claim 52, further comprising conserving less power when it isdetermined that the WTRU is within the area where the remote device isknown to operate.
 50. The method of claim 52, further comprisingsearching for a broadcast message from the remote device.
 51. The methodof claim 52, wherein the data from the remote device further comprisesone or more of the identification information for the remote device,sensor data from the remote device, and a capability of the remotedevice.